I got my thyroid checked 6 years ago. TSH was .94 which is on the very low end. very close to a medical issue, but in what they say is "normal" The normal range of TSH levels is 0.4 to 4.0 milli-international units per liter.
I will admit and i know this is part of my weakness, I have not tracked calories for the last few weeks. I used myfitnesspal for the first 5 weeks and made sure i hit my goal. when gains stopped i went for more calories kept the meal plan the same. It gets really frustrating when the app tells me every day "if you keep eating this you will gain x pounds" and it doesn't happen.
I absolutely have an area to work on and that is better tracking. i eat almost the same thing to noon everyday so I know i have my 2500 calories of the day tracked. winging it from there will not work. What frustrated me the most about the topic is so often it is looked at as a one for all method. that is not the case.
blastthru23
Moderator
Just a thought. The ground flax, and chia seeds may be a possible culprit. Flax can make one push undigested food too quickly through the digestive tract. Chia seeds may compound the effect. If you're using those for fat, and want the fats from seeds, switch to hemp seeds, and maybe use the flax/chia seeds once or twice weekly. When I've used flax powder for my primary source of plant based fat, i was experiencing a similar situation. Perhaps switch it up, and see if that fixes the undigested food problem.
Dolf
Moderator
The only other thing we haven't touched on is what is your activity level at work. Do you have a job like a roofer or asphalt layer where you work in hot environments busting your ass all day long burning huge amounts of calories? Do you train to be a marathon runner or tri athlete?
blastthru23
Moderator
Often, refried beans have lard, and tortillas have lard, or some other kind of (unhealthy) fat.
Brother I feel your frustration and I understand you have been dealing with a challenging situation.
6 years ago.... you could have just said never. 
Go get it checked. I am assuming that you are not running on cycle blood work but that is a different subject which you can correct in the future.
What is your TDEE on training days?
The reason I am asking your TDEE because if you are consuming more calories than you are using and not gaining weight overtime than something is amiss.... Like a tapeworm. )
SEMPER FI
Mister A
Guest
I'm having difficulty understanding what you're trying to get across. I want to understand. You say that what it boils down to is calories in vs calories out, but then you say that the information isn't universal. You're admitting you don't know what your caloric requirements are nor do you know how much you're actually eating, but you're sure that what you're doing is the best way to go about this. I would like to understand better. I'm sorry I'm having such a hard time with it.
Nobody is gaining 20 pounds of muscle per cycle. Maybe someone with excellent genetics their first cycle. If their diet is spot on and training and recovery. You gain 20 pounds in 3 months and you have a ton on intracellular water in addition to fat gain and some muscle mass. Gaining muscle is a slow thing. Expectations of gaining 30, 40 pounds a year are far-fetched. 10 pounds a year is a good aim. 10 keepable pounds. It's really not about the scale. Scales are full of lies and half truths. You don't need dirty calories or junk food to put on weight. You need patience and consistency. Nobody wants to hear that, but it's true. Junk food is for guys with TDEEs over 6000 running GH and insulin and when they just can't get past a wall. It's for the guy who's stuck at 290.
I'm running 1.5 grams of gear including DBol. I've been on cycle for 12 days or so and I've gained .2 pounds, but I'm tighter than when I started and I see better vascularity. Ive had one chest meal that was just half a personal pizza that had cauliflower and and broccoli on it with no sauce or cheese lol. Was that actually pizza? Just needed to wet my beak. My goal is to gain 15 pounds in 5 months and keep at least 12 of them while staying at the same bodyfat percentage. That would be an amazing bulking cycle. My point is that if you want to turn your body into a fat burning, muscle building machine - you need to treat it like one.
Ultimately it sounds like you've figured out a system that works specifically for you. In my original post, I mentioned that that's what one must do when faced with an area they struggle with. I never mentioned anything about one universal principle working for everyone. I only said that gaining size requires one to eat a lot, basically. I don't think what you're doing is optimal and I think I could have you gaining size consistently with some simple adjustments, but that doesn't mean I'm right. At the end of the day, if you're satisfied with your program and the results then it doesn't matter what anyone else has to say, especially me. Definitely looking forward to understanding more about what you're doing and why it's working for you. I'm always interested in learning how other people achieve their goals.
I'm eating zero preservatives, organic vegetarian beans. free range beef, no hormone cheese n sour cream. even the tortillas don't have any additives. I'm good with trying new ways to get calories, but reluctant to drop ways. I've tried that before. to get that many calories a person must be creative yet flexible.
blastthru23
Moderator
I hear that, especially protein. I ended up adding 1 1/2 cups of egg whites, then pushing the chicken into meals 3, 4, & 6. It's a measly addition of 30gr +/-, but like you said, gotta get creative with it. And, since i got that bulk whey isolate, I've increases the two protein shakes from 30gr to about 50gr.
Btw, this pure isolate stuff sure is fun to mess with. I can make it just right. Then, dolf suggested straight glucose instead of cane sugar, so i ordered a pound from nuts.com (i think you're the bro who first brought that site into the picture, thanks!). No acesulfame, no cane sugar. Pretty damn cool.
It's all in the name of gains, health, and creativity. It's pretty damn cool getting to control the macros, and what I'm putting into the old, but far from worn body
Gill-The-Gainer
New member
the eating is the true discpline.